2015 NFL Team Preview: San Francisco 49ers

The rivalry between the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks was fun to watch. They would build their teams to beat the other. They would even claim each others players that were waived. Well, I guess we can put that rivalry to bed for awhile. The Niners are not the same team…in many, many ways.

The Niners are without head coach Jim Harbaugh who left to coach his alma mater. They also lost many faces on defense to retirement and off the field issues. Long-time running back Frank Gore even left town.

Fantasy Sleeper: TE Vernon Davis– I know Davis isn’t exactly a sleeper, but he’s definitely undervalued. He had a back issue last season and it hurt his production. Kaepernick needs consistency and a large tight end is about as comfy of a security blanket you can get in the NFL. I expect more than the 50 targets he received last year.

Team Analysis: The Niners lost a lot of players this offseason for various reasons. They had guys like Aldon Smith and Ray McDonald who lost their job due to off-the-field issues, a few left the game early in fear of long-term concussion issues and some just skipped town once head coach Jim Harbaugh left to coach the University of Michigan. They still have enough players to be competitive, but it could turn into a full-blown rebuilding season. Colin Kaepernick will be tested since he will not have a stout defense to fall back on for support. It will be an interesting season in San Francisco. This will be a rough year for new head coach Jim Tomsula.